My PB? No. But it was, my first fish. And this catch was about as planned as one could get - for a new guy. Let me tell you the story of how this all went down.
I began fishing last August, and I would walk to the water with one goal in mind - I want to catch a fish, of "respectable size." Now of course, that certainly lends itself to a little ambiguity, because, it really isnt in regards to any specific size in particular. I just did not want to catch a small fish. I wanted one, of respectable size.
Well, as the weeks started to pass, I had scouted out 6 or 7 great spots to fish from, all of which were chosen because they contained features that the fish are typically attracted to. I was also absorbing an excessive amount of fishing information at the time, as if I was cramming for some sort of exam. But, to no avail, I was not catching anything. Not to be discouraged though, this was expected.
Then, I came across a fishing report from some guy who fished the same lake in the evening and did well. At the same time learned more about the "dog days of summer." Well, when I put these two informational tidbits together, it made more sense, why I wasnt catching anything. I concluded from that, that perhaps evening fishing would be a better choice.
On the day of the evening trip, I arrived at the lake when the sun was only about 2-3 fingers above the tree line.
But where to go? I selected the spot that was on the shore of a deep 40ft channel, and next to me, to my left, was a shallow pocket. It seemed ideal for its deep water access, availability of shallow forage, fallen log for cover, and plenty of ambush staging. It seemed to me, at the time, that perhaps the fish would hold deep during the day, then come into this shallow pocket in the evening, or stage just outside of it. Hmmm, ideal indeed.
But what to throw? I didnt have much of a selection at the time, only 5 different baits total, to be honest. But, I figured, the sun is low, the water is stained, with visibility of maybe about 2-3ft. --- So with that, I grab my White/Gold spinner bait.
But where to throw it? Well I figured, parallel to shore, sweeping across the front of that pocket. And on about the 5th cast - Bam! I got something. The fish that was hooked, had some fight to it that I had not encountered before. It also had a heaviness that I was not familiar with. When I bring the fish on shore, I am stoked to see that, yes indeed, THIS fish was definitely larger than anything I had caught in the past.
But how big was it? I scramble to pull out my tape measure, and camera. The fish measured 17 inches. Im stoked. THIS fish most definitely qualifies, as being of "respectable size." THIS fish, is exactly the fish I was looking for. It was exactly the fish, that I was trying for...that I was hoping for. I take a quick photo, and pick the fish up and hold it for one last look. Feeling highly accomplished, I wanted to hold the fish up over my head and hollar out as loud as I could like one of them sand-people from Star Wars. But, just then, a voice in the back of my head says to me, "ok put it back."
When I released the fish back into the water, and watched it swim off, I had a strange spurt of emotion overcome me, and raised up my hands victoriously to the sky (I was alone, of course).
My personal best, before this fish, was a 12" LM that I caught in 1986. And since this fish, I have had bigger.
Everything just came together that evening. So, even though this fish is not my biggest, and certainly not my PB...It is, and always shall be - My proudest fish.
